Merchandise display and holding fixture



May 30, 1944. D. GARFINKLE MERCHANDISE DISPLAY AND HOLDING FIXTUREINVENTOR.

Filed June 16, 1942 Patented May 30, 1944 UNITED MERCHANDISE DISPLAY ANDHOLDING FIXTURE David Garfinkle, Alameda, Calif.

Application June 16, 1942, Serial No. 447,290

5 Claims.

The invention relates to a fixture designed for holding and displayingdifferent kinds, grades, etc. of merchandise in segregated relation upona counter-top, and relates more specifically to a fixture of this typein which a number of compartments or bins are provided for themerchandise, by a plurality of vertical partitions of glass or the like,which are adjustably held in position so that the size, shape, andlocation of the compartments may be changed as required.

An object of the invention is to provide a fixture of the characterdescribed in which the arrangement of the various parts of the fixtureupon the counter-top and the attachment of said parts in position on thecounter in any adjustable relation desired, may be efi'ected without theaddition to the counter-top of an extra cover or other specialsupporting surface, or requiring irreparable damage or mutilation of thetop.

Another object of the invention is to provide a fixture of the characterdescribed in which not Only may the position and arrangement of thepartitions r dividers be adjusted to provide for an size or form of themerchandise compartments or bins, but the adjustment or change inpositioning of any one or more of the partitions may beeffected withoutdisturbing or interfering with the adjacentor contiguous partitionsalready properly arranged in position.

A further object is to provide for the support of the partitions, ameans which may be easily placed into and substantially locked in anydesired position without the aid of screwsor other extra parts, can beeasily released from operative. position when adjustment in thepositioning of a partition is required, and will firmly 'hold thepartitions in place and yet permit their ready removal or replacementwithout afiectin or requiring a displacement of the means. i

A further object of the invention is to provide a partition holdingmeans of the character described, Which will support the partition in acushioned or yielding manner and at the some time be itself resilientlyheld in place so that when a strain is imposed on the partitions nobreakage will result even if the latter are constructed of glass.

A still further object is to provide a partition holding means of thecharacter described which may be made as a one-piece stamping, and willbe of such design and construction as to involve practically noreduction of the bin or compartment areas.

Yet another object is to provide asa part of the fixture, a plurality ofsectional members which will form the sole attachment for the fi-xtureto the counter and for anchoring the partition holders in place thereon,and which can be readily adapted to render the fixture adaptable to anycounter dimensions.

The invention possessesother objects and features 0f advantage, some ofwhich, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the followingdescription of the preferred formof the invention which is illustratedin the drawing accompanying and forming part of the specification. It isto be understood, however-{that variations in the showing made 'by thesaid' drawing and description may be adopted within-the scope of theinventionas set forth in the claims.

Referring to said drawing:

Figure 1 is 'a plan view ofa unit of them;- 'ture of my invention asapplied to acounter-top.

Figure 2 is a side viewof the portion of the fixture shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged plan view, partly in section, of a portion ofthe fixture adjacent a side.

Figure 4' is a fragmentary vertical sectional view through the fixturetaken on the line 4-4 of Figure 1. a

Figures 5 and 6 are different perspective views of one of the partitionsupporting members.

Figure 7 is a side view of the partition supporting member in theundeveloped form as a fiat blank.

As illustrated in the drawing, the fixture of my invention is designedfor use upon a countertop and it includes-a number of parts arranged tobe setup inposition-on-thetop so as to provide a multiplicity ofopen-topped bins or compartments of various shapes and dimensionssuitable for holding and displaying merchandiseof different kinds,sizes, and so forth.

The fixture may :bemounted directly upon the upper surface of thecounter and comprises a frame 8 preferably formed in sections "9 whichare arranged tobe-positioned along the side and edge portions of thecounter-top and fastened thereto in order to hold the fixture in place.The sections 9 are :here shown in the form of metal strips of flexiblesheet material ben't to provide substantially right-singularly relatedwalls 12 and [3. The wall 1 2' is'designed tobe positioned to overliethe side or edge portion M of a countertop 16- andso as to causethe-wall 4 3: toproject upwardly from such top. It will-beevident thatthe sections 9 may be readily cutto or pieced together to'provid'efor-any length desired, and

in this way the fixture maybe easily acco1n modated to any size r formof a counter or area thereof. The sections thus positioned along the rimportions of the top are desirably fastened in place and for thispurpose, the wall [2 being preferably formed with openings It to permita nail or screw to be readily driven through the wall for tacking orscrewing the same to the counter material.

The frame sections 9 define an area to be divided up into merchandisecompartments or bins by means of suitable dividers or partitions whichmay be simply plates ll of glass or the like, or a special form of adividerwith or without the plates ll-as herein disclosed.' An importantpart of this invention is the means employed for sup orting thepartitions in upright position and securing same in any desired relationto each other and the frames.

The means for supporting the partitions and securing them in position,includes a holder member I8 which is arranged to be releasably attachedto the section 9. As will be understood, a plurality of holders areutilized, one holder being provided for securing each end of thepartition in position. In the present embodiment, the holders aredesigned to be formed of substantially the same kind of material as theframe sections, and as here shown the holder is so formed as to provideon one side thereof a partition gripping means and on the reverse sidewitha means of attachment to the upright wall l3 ,of the section. Forgripping the partition, the holder is provided with a pair of verticallyextending wings l9 which are normally spaced from each other less thanthe thickness of the partition plates, so that when a plate is insertedtherebetween it will be firmly held by the wings, the spring or fiexurein the holder material serving to provide the wings with the desiredresiliency. To permit ready insertion of the partition plates within thewings, the upper end portions of the latter are fiared outwardly.

The holder I8 is preferably formed as a onepiece stamping, theundeveloped form of which is illustrated in Figure '7. The stampingincludes a back 2| having extensions 22 at the sides thereof which arefolded upon the back and provided with angular end portions which formthe wings i9. Means are provided on the back in cooperation with meanson the sections 9 for permitting the holder to be attached to thesections at any portion along the length thereof. As will probably bemost clear from Figure 4, the upper edge of Wall l3 of the sections isformed with a fiange 2t overlying the wall]; and defining a channel itwith its open sidelowermost. The channel 24 is arranged for thereception of a projection 26 extending upwardly and rearwardly from theback 2| of the holder, and in order that the projection 26 may beretained in the channel and thereby provide an interlocking connectionbetween the holder and section, a portion of the :bottom of the holderis arranged to be positioned upon the wall [2. In the present embodimentof the invention the portion of the holder arranged for engagement withthe wall I2 is in the form of a projection 21 which extends down-,wardly and rearwardly from the bottom of the back. Preferably thedistance between the outer edges of the projections 26 and 2"! is suchthat when the projection 26 is positioned in the channel and against theflange at the top thereof and the lower projection is brought intoengagement with the vertical wall I3, the holder will be firmly grippedin place'between said flange portion and the wall l2. In this connectionit will be noted that the form of the back and projections and thematerial of which the holder is constructed will afford a slight bowingof such parts and thereby enable the back to be resiliently held inplace.

In order that the holder will be prevented from becoming accidentallyreleased from operative engagement with the section, there is formed inthe bottom wall a ridge 28 which is coextensive with the channel 24 andhas its peak in slightly spaced relation to wall l3. In placing theholder in position for attachment to the section, the back of the holderis placed opposite the wall l3 with the projection 26 entered in thechannel 24, and with the projection 21 resting upon the bottom walloutwardly of the ridge peak. The back is then forced inwardly bypressure against the portions 22 which, as previously explained, arefolded upon the back portion. Sufficient pressure must be exerted ofcourse to force the projection 21 over the ridge or hump and in thisconnection it will be noted that independent of any bowing or flexing ofthe back portions, the wall [3 may flex rearwardly and therebycompensate for the normally shorter distance between the fiange andridge. It Will also be noted that the side of the ridge facing the wallI 3, which side together with the base portion of wall l3 in effectdefine a channel for the retention of the projection 27, slopes andextends down to such wall and by reason thereof, after the projection 21passes the peak of the ridge, the holder will move into position on thesection with a snap-action-like movement and thereby insure the lockingengagement of the members.

When it is desired to remove the holder from operative engagement withthe frame section, it may be simply effected by pressing the upper endsof the wings rearwardly so that the holder will fulcrum about the lineof engagement of projection 26 and flange 23 and thereby forceprojection 21 to move back over the ridge and thus permit release ofprojection 26.

It will be evident that since the holders may be inserted at random atany portion of the sections, partitions may be set up between opposingsections to provide for compartments of any width desired. When it isdesired to subdivide the compartments into spaces of shorter length, asection similar to those used for the sides of the fixture may beinserted in the holders, or if desired as here shown, simply laid uponthe counter with the back of the section placed alongside the partition,so that holders may in turn be attached to such division sections forthe support of partitions across the compartments. Further sub-divisionof any compartment or space can almost invariably be had by simplyutilizing sections at the sides of such compartment or space. In thisconnection, it is to be noted that if desired a pair of sections may beinserted in back to back relation in the holders and furthermore, thesections may be used in the holders with or without the conventionalpartitions, the sections being sufficiently high to function as asuitable divider inmany instances.

From the foregoing, it will now be clear first, that with the proper useand assembly of the parts of the fixture, there is substantially nolimit to the number, arrangement, size and'form of the compartments orbins which may be set up upon the counter; second, that changes in theform, size, etc. of any one or more of the compartments or spaces may beeffected without requiring re-assembly of the entire unit or eveninterference with the non-affected compartments or spaces; third, thatthe divisions will be maintained as set without the aid or need ofmerchandise in the bins, and finally that the fixture is well adapted tothe accomplishment of the objects otherwise herein set forth.

I claim:

1. In a counter-top display fixture of the character described, a framemember designed for cooperation with a partition holder to permit snapaction attachment of the holder to an adjustable position by suchattachment substantially everywhere along said member, comprising wallsof resilient sheet material united in substantially right angularrelation, one of said walls being flanged at its free end to provide achannel substantially facing said other wall, said last mentioned wallhaving inner and outer portions coextensive with said channel, the outerof said portions being spaced less from the channel than is the innerportion whereby a portion of the holder designed to operatively fit inand be tween the channel and said inner portion will require a fiexureof said member when the holder is moved into or out of such fittedposition, said last mentioned wall having a portion extending outwardlyfrom said outer portion for supporting and resting the frame member uponthe counter top.

2. In a counter-top fixture of the character described, a frame memberof flexible sheet material and comprising, substantially horizontal andvertical walls united at the lower edge of the vertical Wall, saidvertical wall having its free edge flanged over toward the horizontalwall to provide a channel, said horizontal wall having a ridge thereinspaced from the vertical wall to define therewith a channel co-extensivewith said first channel, said horizontal wall having between its freeedge and said ridge a guide portion leading to said ridge and apartition holder of flexible sheet material having a back part arrangedto fit between said channels, the flexibility and form and size of saidmember and holder and the parts thereof being such that with the backoperatively inserted in said first channel it may be moved transverselyover said guide portion and ridge and into resilient engagement with thebottom of the second channel.

3. In a counter-top fixture of the character described, a frame memberof flexible sheet material and comprising, substantially horizontal andvertical walls united at the lower edge of the vertical wall, saidvertical wall having its free edge flanged over toward the horizontalwall to provide a channel, said horizontal wall having a ridge thereinspaced from the vertical wall to define therewith a channel coextensivewith said first channel, and a partition holder of flexible sheetmaterial having a back portion and integral side portions foldedthereupon, said side portions bent outwardly to define resilient arms toreceive and grip the partition therebetween, and said back portionhaving upper and lower extensions arranged to seat in said channels foranchoring said holder to said member, the flexibility, form andproportions of said member and holder and the parts thereof being suchthat with the upper extensions of the back portion operatively insertedin the first channel the other extension may be moved by hand pressuretransversely over said ridge and maintained in resilient engagement withthe bottom of the second channel.

4. In a counter-top merchandise display and holding fixture, acounter-edge member comprising, an elongated section with upright andhorizontal walls united at the rear edge of said horizontal wall and thelower edge of the upright wall, said latter wall having its upper edgeflanged to provide a channel over said Horizontal wall, said horizontalwall formed to lie substantially fiat upon the counter-top and arrangedto be fastened directly and solidly thereto, and said horizontal wallhaving provided therein a channel coextensive with said first channel,and a partition. holder arranged in said section and havingpartition-gripping wing portions positioned over said horizontal walland anchoring portions formed for insertion Within said channels inresilient engagement with the wall portions.

5. In a counter-top merchandise display and holding fixture, anelongated member having upright and horizontal walls united insubstantially right angular relation and having formed thereinvertically spaced and opposed channels, said horizontal wall having aportion spaced from said channels and vertical wall and providing ameans of supporting the member on the counter top with the horizontaland vertical walls respectively parallel and perpendicular to said top,and a partition holder arranged on said member and havingpartition-gripping wing portions positioned over said horizontal walland vertically spaced anchoring portions seated in said channels andresiliently and interlockingly engaging with the wall portions definingsaid channels.

DAVID GARFINKLE.

